Collegiate Water Polo Association Women’s Teams Rank Among Best in 2016-17 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Academic Progress Rate Report

National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Academic Progress Rate Database

BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — The Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) rates among the undisputed centers of academic success in Division I women’s water polo as the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) released the 2016-17 NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate report.

The only water polo conference to better the NCAA average each year since the first APR rankings were released following the 2004-05 season, the CWPA posted a 989 APR to best the sport’s average APR for the 13th consecutive year.

Brown University and George Washington University lead the CWPA as the Bears and Colonials join Santa Clara University, Stanford University, the University of California-Los Angeles, Villanova University and Wagner College in posting perfect scores of 1,000.  Princeton University (996), Bucknell University (992), Harvard University (991) and the University of Michigan (986) join Brown and George Washington in tying or bettering the NCAA all sport (983) and NCAA women’s water polo (986) averages.

Indiana University (979), Hartwick College (978) and Saint Francis University (977) complete the CWPA’s nine Division I teams as the league posted a score of 989.  The score trails only one league as the six Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) schools netted a 996 average.  The Golden Coast Conference (989, four institutions) tied the CWPA for the runner-up position with the Big West Conference (985, six institutions) and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (973, eight institutions) trailing behind.

It is important to note that NCAA Academic Progress Rate reports are not a full examination of academic achievement across the sport as women’s water polo, although sponsored by a number of Division I institutions, is considered a non-divisional sport due to the lack of a unique NCAA Division II or III championship. Since the sport spans Divisions I, II and III, not all of the respective leagues’ membership, including the all-Division II Western Water Polo Association (WWPA), the CWPA’s Division III membership and the all-Division III Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) are excluded from the report.

A measuring stick for the NCAA in determining academic success, the APR provides a real-time look at a team’s academic success each semester or quarter by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete. The APR includes eligibility, retention, and graduation in the calculation and provides a clear picture of the academic culture in each sport.

Each student-athlete receiving athletically related financial aid earns one retention point for staying in school and one eligibility point for being academically eligible. A team’s total points are divided by points possible and then multiplied by one thousand to equal the team’s Academic Progress Rate score.

The NCAA calculates the rate as a rolling, four-year figure that takes into account all the points student-athletes could earn for remaining in school and academically eligible during that period. Teams that do not earn an Academic Progress Rate above specific benchmarks face penalties ranging from scholarship reductions to more severe sanctions.

Teams must earn a 930 four-year average APR or face consequences intended to direct additional focus on academics. Those penalties can include practice restrictions and playing-season reductions with the intent to fill time that would have been spent on athletics with academic activities.